State Parking Requirements (Senate Bill 5184) Implementation Project

STATUS UPDATE - On Tuesday, April 7, 2026, City Council adopted Ordinance O-4935(PDF, 848KB) to update the the minimum vehicle and bicycle parking requirements in the Kirkland Zoning Code. The ordinance goes into effect on April 18, 2026. 

Project Overview

On April 7, 2026, City Council adopted Ordinance O-4935(PDF, 848KB) to implement the state-mandated requirements for minimum parking, eliminate minimum parking requirements within the NE 85th Street Station Area boundaries, allow existing commercial spaces to expand without being required to provide parking for the expansion, and establish bicycle parking requirements that are independent of vehicle parking requirements. This ordinance completes the first phase of this project. Phase 2 will clean up the Zoning Code to remove all pre-existing parking regulations and explore establishing ADA parking requirements beyond those in the Washington State Building Code.

Project Background

In May 2025, Washington State passed Senate Bill 5184 to limit the number of on-site parking spaces that cities may require for commercial and residential projects and land uses. This bill was passed because the legislature found that parking requirements increase housing costs and promote reliance on automobiles, and that the amount of parking that a project or use provides should be based on market conditions rather than a standard number of parking spaces based on the size of a building. 

Kirkland’s parking regulations did not comply with the requirements of this bill, so this project amended the Zoning Code to bring the City into compliance with SB 5184. Kirkland’s implementation of the bill has resulted in fewer minimum parking spaces being required citywide. 

In addition to implementing SB 5184 citywide, this project eliminated parking minimums within NE 85th Street Station Area boundaries and added an allowance for existing commercial spaces to expand without being required to provide parking for the expansion. These additions are intended to support local businesses and help catalyze development in the Station Area. The project also updated the bicycle parking requirements to have them be based on the square footage or number of units in a project rather than the number of required vehicle parking spaces.